ake dat syrup on de
plantation. Dey's ten or twelve big clay kettles in a row, sot in de
furnace.

"We have lots to eat, and if de rations run short we goes huntin' or
fishin'. Some de old men kills rattlesnake and cook 'em like fish and
say dey fish. I eat dat many a time and never knowed it. 'Twas good,
too.

"Dey used to have a big house where dey kep' de chillen, 'cause de
wolves and panthers was bad. Some de mammies what suckle de chillen
takes care of all de chillen durin' de daytime and at night dey own
mammies come in from de field and take dem. Sometime old missy she help
nuss and all de li'l niggers well care for. When dey gits sick dey makes
de med'cine of herbs and well 'em dat way.

"When us left Alabama us come through Meridian to Houston and den to
Hockley and den to Sunnyside, 'bout 18 mile west of Houston. Dat a
country with lots of woods and us sot in to clean up de ground and clean
up 150 acres to farm on. Dere 'bout forty-seven hands and more
'cumulates. Dey go back to Meridian for more and brung 'em in a ox cart.

"My brother, Bonzane Johnson, was one dey brung on dat trip. I had
'nother brother, Keen, what die when he 102 year old. Us was all
long-life people, 'cause I have a gran' uncle what die when he 136 year
old. He and my grandma and grandpa come from South Carolina and dey was
all Africa people. I heered dem tell how dey brung from Africa in de
ship. My daddy he die at 99 and 'nother brother at 104.

"Us see lots of sojers when us come through from Meridian and dey de
cavalry. Dey come ridin' up with high hats like beavers on dey head and
us 'fraid of 'em, 'cause dey told us dey gwine take us to Cuba and sell
us dere.

"When us first git to Texas it was cold--not sort a cold, but I mean
cold. I shovel de snow many a day. Dey have de big, common house and de
white folks live upstairs and de niggers sleep on de first floor. Dat to
'tect de white folks at night, but us have our own houses for to live in
in de daytime, builded out of logs and daubed with mud and nail rive
out boards over dat mud. Dey make de chimney out of sticks and mud, too
but us have no windows, and in summer us kind of live out in de bresh
arbor, what was cool.

"Us have all kind of crops and more'n 100 acres in fruit, 'cause dey
brung all kind trees and seeds from Alabama. Dey was undergroun' springs
and de water was sho' good to drink, 'cause in Mobile de water wasn't
fitten to drink. It taste like it have de lum